10 Ways to Wear a White T-Shirt

Your white tee just might be the most interesting item in your closet. We'll show you why

There are certain wardrobe essentials every woman should have: a classic jean, basic black pumps, a well-tailored blazer, a little black dress … but we would like to nominate one more item — the classic white tee*.

We know what you’re thinking. A white T-shirt? That’s my sleeping/painting/lounging/errands shirt. Au contraire faithful reader. A white tee is so much more than a comfy top strictly confined to the interior of your house, as we are about to show you. You can wear it to work, out with the girls, or even on a date.

With the help of a few brave staffers, we decided to show you just how amazing a plain white tee is. Vests, suspenders, tutus, overalls(!), we tried it all. And guess what we found? Besides being super comfy, the T-shirt is truly the most versatile piece of clothing you’ll ever own. Consider it the Swiss army knife of shirts, if you will.

So, take a look through our gallery. Get inspired. Dust off that plain white tee and vow to wear it outside the house with style. (And if you have another great T-shirt combo that we missed, let us know in the comments section.) ‘Cause we believe the white tee deserves its place next to the LBD. Don’t you agree?

* T-shirt Factoid: Americans didn’t go T-shirt crazy until 1951, when Marlon Brando graced the screen in “A Streetcar Named Desire,” wearing … a T-shirt. Though they were not a new invention — tees had been seen on Naval officers and dockworkers — T-shirts weren’t mass-produced; instead they were custom ordered. But all it took was one brooding, smoldering Brando for the T-shirt to take fire.